We moved to India a couple of years ago from the US. After having spent 14 years in the US, moving to Pune, India was a big adventure. The decision process itself was quite agonising, especially so because wechose to move. We did not have to move becasue of career/job, nor to take care of aging parents. We were very comfortably settled in upscale, suburban NJ, with a nice home, excellent schools, fantastic friends and neighbours, and a great job. To have to give this all up and to move to India was a very tough decision. It took us almost a year to decide…..finally we figured we just had to do it, or we would regret it the rest of our life.

We moved to India on our own. There was no company moving us, nor the support of any relocation agency. From start to finish, we were entirely on our own. You can call it crazy, you can call it gutsy, you can call it an adventure. We called it all of the above at some point or another. We learned many things and unlearned a few. We adjusted our approach to many things, oftentimes just to stay sane. The first one year was emotionally very hard, with the first three months being the worst. Our kids adjusted much easier than we did. Finally, two years after moving to India, we can call Pune our home. We went through phases of elation, despair, stubborn resistance and profound acceptance. We did all this and we survived – as many others have and hopefully you will.

We decided to share with you our experiences and what we learned along the way. Right from the decision to move, to the planning of the move, settling down in India after you arrive, and finally living here. From small pieces of information which are not easy to come by (e.g. where do you buy good cheese?) to deep insight and philosophy – we’ll write about all that. We hope your path eases, even if just a bit, from information we share. At a minimum, we can offer camaraderie and possibly the help of the broader community. Thanks for visiting!